Depends on the state. Probably would be legal in Florida.

I always wondered this. How many other of the Speed sets are driver specific? My McLaren one did not have Hamilton or Button, and the Ferrari truck didn’t have Kimi (I may have my years a bit mixed up on the Ferrari). The new Mercedes F1 set doesn’t have Hamilton.

I bet there is a lot of overlap between those three organizations and Jalopnik readership.

Companies will offer discounts to special interest groups all of the time. Helps them market directly to these groups, it’s just advertising. SCCA gets discounts at a lot of places, same with BMW CCA, ASME, etc.

There are a ton of awesome racing documentaries out there (just watched the Williams one last night). Are we sticking to regular movies or including docs?

Don’t feel bad - it is going to give its transmission to a 540iT to make a better car!

Damn, 1500??? F me I spent more than that on the parts to rebuild the automatic (TC, VB, rebuild kit, temp sensor, and fluid; but labor was free). I know you’re on the west coast, but what resource did you use to find that at?

I am jealous - wish I did the swap instead of rebuilding the automatic.

It’s not. Just a little harder mechanically than changing a clutch. Programming is easy. You’ll be fine. I need to get myself a 540i/6 parts car, but I have to finish my Z3 project first (diff mount reinforcement).

I’ve accepted the demise of the NA V8 RWD BMW wagon - just can’t get myself to accept it without the most powerful non-M engine available for the model. I guess it’s nothing we couldn’t solve later - just like the manual swap on the E39 540iT, just something I wish we didn’t have to contemplate.

This, exactly this. I don’t get why anyone buys these mutants. Also, the proportions look off with it.

I’m a Mechanical PE and being mechanically adept has been invaluable (granted, I’m definitely on the far end of mechanically inclined - done a lot of the more intense/big jobs on my cars, decent welder, etc.). When you understand how things are put together, you will make better design decisions. It’s surprising how…

As a mechanical engineer that has worked with NASA engineers, I have found the best engineers are the ones that work with their hands. Whether it’s handyman work around the house, woodworking, automotive work, or some sort of tinkering, those that do this stuff tend to be better engineers. I have met good and bad…

This sounds like my backyard. And sometimes my front yard. And the garage. And now I’m realizing how dangerous my house is.

Three songs do it for me:

I wonder if this could have worked as a 4 passenger sedan instead.

As far as a company doing this, it depends on the car. I could see it being useful for M-cars, 911's, AMG’s, stuff like that.

This is a really good idea and I applaud you for adding to automotive history here. (No sarcasm, genuinely agreeing with your approach!)

All I want is a track to have automotive biathlon. That would be awesome.

2000 540iT Dinan Stage 2 w/ 240k on it. I just rebuilt the automatic in it about 6 months ago and regret not just going with the manual swap. I rationalized it by saying my wife still drives it once in a while and she can’t drive stick very well. I fixed a symptom and not the problem (should just get her driving…